6 days ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
KU crisis: Pro-left syndicate members counter Gurukkal's statement, demand its withdrawal
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Pro-left Syndicate members of Kerala University have urged Kerala State Higher Education Council vice-chairperson Rajan Gurukkal to retract his statement blaming the Kerala University Syndicate for the current crisis in the university.
The Syndicate members said Gurukkal's aspersions on the Syndicate were not only erroneous but also lent unintended grist to the Sangh Parivar's mill.
In a statement on July 20, Gurukkal had said the Syndicate's ignorance of the Act and Statutes was the prime reason for the crisis. According to M Lenin Lal, pro-LDF syndicate member, Gurukkal's accusation of statutory violations by the Kerala University Syndicate is wholly unfounded.
The real flashpoint lies in the overreach of Vice-Chancellor-in-Charge Mohanan Kunnummal.
On July 2, Kunnummal suspended Registrar K.S. Anil Kumar for cancelling a private event at the Senate Hall, where a portrait of Bharat Mata, adorned with a saffron flag, was displayed in the presence of Governor Rajendra Arlekar.
Citing Section 10(13) of the Kerala University Act, Kunnummal claimed an emergency necessitated his decision. However, Section 10(14) explicitly restricts the Vice-Chancellor's authority to suspend officers above the rank of Deputy Registrar, such as the Registrar, a senior officer under Chapter III, Section 9.
